Conclusion: EU27 imports of polyether polyols from outside the bloc totalled 207,585 tonnes in the twelve months from August 2025 to July 2026, and China supplied 51.8% of that volume at an average declared customs unit value of EUR 1,220 per tonne — about 39% below the EUR 2,000 per tonne implied for all other origins combined. Five EU producers filed a dumping complaint on 8 June 2026 and the European Commission opened a formal anti-dumping investigation on 30 June 2026, so the unit-value gap documented below is now the central commercial question for anyone buying polyether polyols into Europe.
Data updated: 2026-10-11
Latest 12 months (August 2025 – July 2026)
This section covers the most recent twelve-month window for which monthly customs records exist. Eurostat’s Comext monthly series for EU27 extra-EU trade runs through July 2026 (the latest month published at the time of writing); UN Comtrade annual data runs through 2025, with 2025 first-reported and subject to revision; Comtrade monthly data for India and the United States runs through June 2026. Where a series could not be extended, that is stated explicitly rather than silently truncated.
Over the twelve months, EU27 extra-EU imports of polyether polyols (CN 3907 29 20) were 207,585 tonnes valued at EUR 331.3 million, an implied unit value of EUR 1,596 per tonne. Exports over the same window were 408,063 tonnes valued at EUR 827.4 million, an implied unit value of EUR 2,028 per tonne. The bloc therefore remains a large net exporter of this product family even while importing low-unit-value commodity volumes from Asia.
Imports from China over the twelve months were 107,494 tonnes valued at EUR 131.2 million (EUR 1,220 per tonne). Stripping China out, the remaining 100,091 tonnes carried an implied unit value of EUR 2,000 per tonne.
| Month | EU27 imports (t) | Imports (EUR m) | Imports (EUR/t) | EU27 exports (t) | Exports (EUR m) | Exports (EUR/t) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-08 | 13,642 | 23.8 | 1,746 | 32,831 | 61.6 | 1,877 |
| 2025-09 | 20,105 | 31.6 | 1,573 | 35,582 | 65.8 | 1,848 |
| 2025-10 | 17,837 | 27.7 | 1,552 | 38,517 | 67.0 | 1,741 |
| 2025-11 | 15,426 | 23.7 | 1,537 | 36,310 | 63.0 | 1,734 |
| 2025-12 | 13,122 | 20.2 | 1,539 | 33,622 | 60.5 | 1,800 |
| 2026-01 | 13,699 | 22.0 | 1,606 | 35,074 | 65.5 | 1,866 |
| 2026-02 | 15,307 | 23.1 | 1,509 | 33,327 | 64.4 | 1,933 |
| 2026-03 | 16,169 | 23.9 | 1,480 | 29,969 | 63.7 | 2,126 |
| 2026-04 | 19,940 | 30.9 | 1,548 | 31,638 | 68.0 | 2,149 |
| 2026-05 | 26,191 | 38.2 | 1,459 | 29,961 | 79.6 | 2,655 |
| 2026-06 | 17,490 | 32.0 | 1,829 | 34,302 | 83.2 | 2,425 |
| 2026-07 | 18,655 | 34.2 | 1,831 | 36,931 | 85.2 | 2,307 |
Table 1 — EU27 extra-EU trade in polyether polyols, CN 3907 29 20, monthly. Volume from QUANTITY_IN_100KG, value from VALUE_IN_EUROS; unit value = value ÷ volume. Source: Eurostat Comext dataset DS-045409 (see source list). Latest month published: 2026-07.
| Month | Imports from China (t) | China unit value (EUR/t) | China share of import volume | Other origins (EUR/t) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-08 | 5,067 | 1,220 | 37.1% | 2,057 |
| 2025-09 | 11,357 | 1,202 | 56.5% | 2,055 |
| 2025-10 | 9,585 | 1,182 | 53.7% | 1,982 |
| 2025-11 | 8,658 | 1,193 | 56.1% | 1,978 |
| 2025-12 | 5,835 | 1,239 | 44.5% | 1,780 |
| 2026-01 | 5,977 | 1,178 | 43.6% | 1,938 |
| 2026-02 | 7,268 | 1,088 | 47.5% | 1,889 |
| 2026-03 | 7,779 | 1,101 | 48.1% | 1,832 |
| 2026-04 | 10,944 | 1,198 | 54.9% | 1,974 |
| 2026-05 | 15,806 | 1,135 | 60.4% | 1,952 |
| 2026-06 | 7,657 | 1,400 | 43.8% | 2,162 |
| 2026-07 | 11,560 | 1,486 | 62.0% | 2,394 |
Table 2 — EU27 imports of polyether polyols from China versus all other origins. “Other origins” unit value is derived by subtracting the China flow from the EU27 total for the same month, so it is an implied residual rather than a directly published series. Source: Eurostat Comext DS-045409, partner CN and partner EXT_EU27_2020.
| Reporter and flow | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| China exports (t) | 815,752 | 1,190,797 | 1,397,759 | 1,765,331 | 2,230,826 | 2,848,002 |
| China exports (USD/t) | 1,781 | 2,650 | 2,113 | 1,596 | 1,424 | 1,275 |
| China imports (t) | 636,378 | 657,611 | 493,567 | 443,068 | 398,911 | 306,198 |
| China imports (USD/t) | 2,144 | 2,993 | 2,942 | 2,650 | 3,048 | 3,737 |
| Rep. of Korea exports (t) | 535,895 | 576,335 | 547,046 | 510,358 | n/r | n/r |
| Saudi Arabia exports (t) | 332,651 | 387,568 | 302,417 | 186,267 | 356,843 | 179,050 |
| USA exports (t) | 602,743 | 614,972 | n/r | 479,968 | n/r | n/r |
| Türkiye imports (t) | 288,822 | 315,960 | n/r | 364,922 | n/r | 401,840 |
| India imports (t) | 229,434 | 327,026 | 271,343 | 412,940 | n/r | n/r |
| Japan imports (t) | 97,978 | 109,156 | 115,870 | 121,091 | n/r | 141,012 |
Table 3 — Annual trade in polyethers, HS 390729 for 2022–2025 and the predecessor code HS 390720 for 2020–2021. *2025 is first-reported and subject to revision. “n/r” means the reporter filed a customs value without a net weight for that year, so no unit value can be computed; no estimate has been substituted. Source: UN Comtrade public preview API.
What the Commission is investigating
Analysis — regulatory fact, sourced. On 30 June 2026 the European Commission published a notice of initiation of an anti-dumping proceeding concerning imports of certain polyether polyols originating in the People’s Republic of China. The complaint was lodged on 8 June 2026 by BASF, Covestro, PCC Rokita, Shell and Chimcomplex, according to the reporting on the case.
The product within scope is defined by chemistry rather than by a single tariff line: polyether polyols are organic polymers containing multiple ether linkages and chemically unreacted hydroxyl groups with a hydroxyl number between 10 and 520, obtained by polymerisation of a starter with ethylene oxide and/or propylene oxide. Pure polyols, blends containing dispersed polymeric solids, and additivated or catalysed formulations are all covered. Polyethylene glycols, currently under CN 3907 29 11, are explicitly excluded. The product is classified under CN code ex 3907 29 20 (TARIC codes 3907 29 20 35 and 3907 29 20 90).
One scope caveat matters for the tables above: the Eurostat line used here is all of CN 3907 29 20, a wider basket than the two TARIC subdivisions named in the notice, so the trade figures are an upper bound on the investigated product.
The price gap the case is built on
Analysis — derived from the customs series above. The single most striking feature of the last twelve months is the size of the unit-value spread between Chinese and non-Chinese supply into the EU. China averaged EUR 1,220 per tonne across the window; the residual basket of all other origins averaged EUR 2,000 per tonne. On a volume-weighted basis, Chinese material landed at roughly 39% below the rest of the supplier base.
That spread is not constant. It narrowed sharply into February 2026, when China’s unit value fell to EUR 1,088 per tonne while other origins held at EUR 1,889, then widened again as Chinese unit values climbed to EUR 1,400 in June and EUR 1,486 in July. The June–July move coincides with the opening of the investigation and is worth watching month by month.
Customs unit values are not market prices and should not be read as a dumping margin. They are declared customs value divided by declared net weight for a heterogeneous tariff basket, and they move with grade, molecular weight, hydroxyl number, additive content, packaging, Incoterms and transfer pricing. Only the Commission’s own determination can establish dumping, and none existed at the time of writing.
The EU is importing the cheap end and exporting the expensive end
Analysis — derived from the customs series above. The aggregate position complicates the injury narrative in a useful way. Over the last twelve months the EU27 exported 408,063 tonnes of polyether polyols and imported 207,585 tonnes, and the export unit value (EUR 2,028 per tonne) sat about 27% above the import unit value (EUR 1,596 per tonne).
The most defensible reading is that Europe retains a position in higher-value and specialised polyols — the export basket — while the import basket is concentrated in commodity grades where price competition is fiercest. The alleged injury therefore concerns the commodity segment, not the aggregate balance. For a procurement team that distinction decides which grades are exposed and which are not.
Chinese supply also remains volatile rather than smoothly rising. Monthly volumes from China ranged from 5,067 tonnes in August 2025 to 15,806 tonnes in May 2026 and back to 11,560 tonnes in July, with China’s share of EU import volume swinging between 37.1% and 62.0% in the same twelve months. A single month’s print is a poor basis for a sourcing decision.
The global supply picture behind the EU case
Analysis / outlook — sourced to Comtrade annual data. China’s own statistics show how the supply side developed. Chinese exports of polyethers (HS 390729, and HS 390720 for 2020–2021) rose from 815,752 tonnes in 2020 to 2,848,002 tonnes in 2025, while the average export unit value fell from USD 1,781 to USD 1,275 per tonne — a 28% decline against a 3.5-fold volume increase.
The same data show China moving in the opposite direction at the top of the range: Chinese imports fell from 636,378 tonnes in 2020 to 306,198 tonnes in 2025 while their unit value rose from USD 2,144 to USD 3,737 per tonne. Together the two series describe a widening split between commodity polyols China exports in growing volumes at falling unit values, and higher-performance polyols it still buys.
Other exporters are flatter. Korean exports were 510,358 tonnes in 2023 with no net weight filed for 2024 and 2025; Saudi Arabian exports fell from 387,568 tonnes in 2021 to 179,050 tonnes in 2025; US exports stood at 479,968 tonnes in 2023 with no net weight for 2024 and 2025. Because so many 2025 filings lack net weight, this note draws no unit-value conclusions from the annual panel.
What buyers of polyether polyols should be checking
Analysis / outlook — each point traceable to the sources listed below.
- Establish where your material sits in the tariff. — The investigation names CN ex 3907 29 20 with TARIC codes 3907 29 20 35 and 3907 29 20 90, and excludes polyethylene glycols under CN 3907 29 11. Buyers should confirm the exact TARIC classification of each grade they purchase, including additivated formulations, before assuming exposure either way.
- Watch the volume prints for pre-emptive stockbuilding. — Imports in May 2026 (26,191 tonnes) were the highest monthly figure in the twelve-month window, and July 2026 (18,655 tonnes) rebounded after a soft June. Monthly Eurostat prints are the fastest public way to see whether the market is front-loading ahead of any provisional measure.
- Monitor the residual unit-value spread, not the headline price. — The China-versus-rest spread compressed to roughly 40% in February 2026 and widened again by July. A duty, if imposed, will land on top of a spread that is itself moving.
- Fix your evidence trail now. — The complaint is built from customs data of exactly the kind reproduced above, so importers who may need to comment in the proceeding should assemble their own landed-cost records rather than rely on published benchmarks.
Related product coverage on this site
Polyether polyols sit on the propylene oxide chain. The feedstock position is covered in our propylene oxide market analysis and the adjacent propylene position in our propylene market analysis. Downstream, the same molecule family feeds polyurethane and unsaturated-polyester production: see our polyether polyol page for specification and trade-weighted unit values, our propylene glycol page for the mono-propylene glycol sibling, and our ethylene oxide page for the alternative alkoxylation starter.
Data limitations
- Monthly coverage. Eurostat’s Comext series used here runs from 2025-01 and extends to 2026-07, the latest month published when this note was compiled; the most recent month is the most likely to be revised. Comtrade monthly data for India and the United States extends to 2026-06.
- Annual coverage. HS 390729 exists only from the 2022 nomenclature. Comtrade returns no records at all for HS 390729 in 2020 and 2021, so those two years are reported on the predecessor code HS 390720, which covers polyethers excluding polyacetals. Chinese annual exports for 2025 are first-reported and subject to revision.
- Missing net weights. Several reporters — including the United States, Korea, Japan, India, Switzerland, Türkiye and Mexico in various years — filed customs values without net weights. Those cells show n/r and no estimate has been substituted. India’s own reported export unit values rest on very small net-weight bases and are not used here.
- EU aggregate. UN Comtrade’s “European Union” reporter aggregate and Eurostat’s extra-EU27 series are not interchangeable for this product and differ materially. Every EU figure here comes from Eurostat; Comtrade is used only for non-EU reporters.
- Unit values are not prices. “Unit value” means declared customs value divided by declared net weight — not a market price, contract price or dumping margin. No subscription assessment from ICIS, Platts, Argus or Wood Mackenzie has been used anywhere in this note.
- Product-basket mismatch. The Eurostat line CN 3907 29 20 is broader than the TARIC subdivisions named in the investigation.
Data sources
- European Commission, Notice of initiation of an anti-dumping proceeding concerning imports of certain polyether polyols originating in the People’s Republic of China, Official Journal C/2026/3478, 30 June 2026 — https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=OJ:C_202603478 (accessed 2026-10-11)
- CMS, EU anti-dumping investigation concerning imports of certain polyether polyols originating in China — product scope, CN and TARIC codes — https://cms.law/en/pol/legal-updates/eu-anti-dumping-investigation-concerning-imports-of-certain-polyether-polyols-originating-in-china (accessed 2026-10-11)
- Agence Europe, European Commission launches new anti-dumping investigation into Chinese polyether polyol imports, 1 July 2026 — https://agenceurope.eu/en/bulletin/article/13900/31/european-commission-launches-new-anti-dumping-investigation-into-chinese-polyether-polyol-imports (accessed 2026-10-11)
- Eurostat, Comext dataset DS-045409, monthly extra-EU27 trade, CN 3907 29 20, partner EXT_EU27_2020 — https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/DS-045409/default/table (accessed 2026-10-11)
- Eurostat, Comext dataset DS-045409, monthly extra-EU27 trade, CN 3907 29 20, partner CN — API query — https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/api/comext/dissemination/statistics/1.0/data/DS-045409?format=JSON&freq=M&reporter=EU27_2020&partner=CN&product=39072920&flow=1&indicators=VALUE_IN_EUROS&indicators=QUANTITY_IN_100KG&sinceTimePeriod=2025-01 (accessed 2026-10-11)
- UN Comtrade, public preview API, annual HS 390729, reporter China, exports 2025 — https://comtradeapi.un.org/public/v1/preview/C/A/HS?includeDesc=true&reporterCode=156&period=2025&flowCode=X&cmdCode=390729&partnerCode=0 (accessed 2026-10-11)
- UN Comtrade, public preview API, annual HS 390720, reporter China, exports 2020 — https://comtradeapi.un.org/public/v1/preview/C/A/HS?includeDesc=true&reporterCode=156&period=2020&flowCode=X&cmdCode=390720&partnerCode=0 (accessed 2026-10-11)
- UN Comtrade, public preview API, monthly HS 390729, reporter USA, imports 2026-06 — https://comtradeapi.un.org/public/v1/preview/C/M/HS?includeDesc=true&reporterCode=842&period=202606&flowCode=M&cmdCode=390729&partnerCode=0 (accessed 2026-10-11)
If you are pricing, sourcing or underwriting polyether polyols and need the underlying monthly series, grade-level unit-value bands or a supplier-by-supplier breakdown for the EU27, request a sample report or a custom research brief.